[ It's all he can do to keep from pressing his hand too painfully against her cheek. It's his duty, his role as her brother, her father, her guardian, her protector, to keep her from getting hurt. To keep the world from hurting her, however he can. He'd stood between her and death with nothing but a sword in his hand, her last line of defense, and now she's hurting, her heart is breaking, and not only can he not stop it, he's the reason for it. ]

In the next life, huh?

[ His voice feels thick, and his lips tug into a quick, heartbroken smile. ]

We didn't get to say goodbye, before.

[ He'd been calm, then, in the face of her despair and his own doom. A small shake of his head, slow. He'd been dying then already, his lifeblood spilling down the front of the uniform on which Sophie and the boys had worked so diligently. This, too, is a legacy. He huffs a small, sad breath that's nothing really like a laugh. ]

I still don't want to say it, even now. But I'm glad we got the chance.